A Rainer Demon Is Born
by Rose Spirit
Summary: Nerua always knew that she was different from everyone else, and when she moved from her home in California to Japan, her journey as a Rainer Demon began... Finished!
1. Nerua

Ellen: Okay, okay, I'll leave out the stupid disclaimer this time. Just letting you know, like you didn't already, I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho.

Fwooshy: Thanks for coming to read our fic and all, but ragespandagundam (whoever you are, since you didn't have the decency to give a signed review), isn't there someone else you can harass?

"Nerua, honey, we're here!" I recognized my mother's voice from the hazy fog of half-sleep only attainable in a car, but chose to ignore it. However, the 1992 Geo Prism slowed down, and pulled into its trademark jerky stop, forcing me to wake up. I got out of the car, slowly crawled inside our new house and up the stairs into my bed, and was asleep before my head hit the pillow.

The next day dawned cool and cloudy. I got up early to check out the new neighborhood. I threw on a white windbreaker over my dark jeans and blank white T-shirt, and headed around the court while my parents were still asleep. We had just moved from America, California to be exact. No one was out this early except me, and it was a nice change to be alone. _To think about home…_ Argh. My footsteps on the sidewalk were echoing too loudly around the deserted street, making it hard for me to think. Almost without thinking, I summoned up some clover under my feet to dull the sound. I whispered a quiet apology to the clover for being stepped on, and suddenly realized that someone was watching me, and had been watching me as I created the plants. I whirled around, looking for the dead man. I saw a flash of red and white in a window, but then it disappeared, leaving me with the feeling that I was no longer alone.

Fwooshy: Dun-dun-duuuuunnn!

Lauren: That is unnecessary, you know.

Fwooshy: But it adds dramatic tension! Like Red Mage from 8-Bit Theatre!

Lauren: Sigh... Anyway, it would be nice to get more reviews! Also, if you just want to chat about anything, or if something's wrong with any of my fics, **e-mail me** so you don't look stupid putting up a poorly edited flame!


	2. School

Ellen: Here we go with reposting the second chapter! Like I said before, e-mail me if you want a friend!

Fwooshy: What, we aren't enough for you?

Ellen: Yami are different. YOU never go away.

Fwooshy: Don't you love us?

Ellen: I wish I didn't.

Fwooshy: Aw... Ellen loves a girl! Ellen loves a girl!

Ellen: Malecasu?

Malecasu: randomly appears from middle of fanfiction I'm on it.

Fwooshy: runs away

Ellen: Thank you.

Malecasu: randomly disappears

I finished my walk and headed home, noting the house where I had seen the... something, the clover rising and falling under my feet. As I arrived home, I grabbed a quick bite to eat and my schoolbag, got into my uniform, and headed off to my first day of school. I don't know what it was, I blamed it on maybe American schooling, but instinctively I started looking for something. I dismissed it as still being jumpy from earlier, but still I kept a careful eye, wondering.

_**Demons. Like you.**_

I gasped. The words had just appeared in my head. I didn't even know what a demon was. (A/N: Talk about a protected childhood!) I subconsciously quickened my pace. I arrived at my new school, Sarayashiki Junior High, without further incident, except for passing a fight between a boy with greasy black hair and an even bigger boy with carrot-orange hair. The smaller boy, who wasn't wearing a school uniform, pounded the red-head into the pavement numerous times. They seemed to be fighting about someone named Eikichi. I despise men who fight over women as if they are possessions. I kept walking, not stopping to watch.

The teachers at school were nice enough. I was introduced to every class as "Nerua Teraf", giving them no end of trouble in pronouncing my name. I still looked around in every class, this time for the 'demons' or whatever, as well as potential friends, enemies, wusses, etc, as I always did. In the last class before lunch, something struck me. There was a boy in one of my classes, apparently named Suichi Minamino. He was sitting next to the two boys who were fighting before school, who were laughing to each other silently and tapping Suichi on the back, but he wasn't paying any attention to them. Suichi was staring straight at me. I returned the stare politely. Some internal sense was raising alarm bells in my brain about all three boys, but particularly Suichi, so I figured I'd better be careful.

At lunch, I sought out the three, only another guy who, by the looks of him, was a Goth, had joined them. He was pretty short, and was wearing sort of a black robe thing that was definitely _not_ a school uniform, so I figured that he didn't go to school here. He didn't share in the laughter of the other three, just barely making it clear that he was with them at all. Also, I felt the same sense towards him that I had felt to Suichi. I approached the group and they stopped laughing to look at me.

"Hello. My name's Nerua. I couldn't help but notice you in the last class. Mind if I join you?" I tossed my waist-length brown hair around my shoulders, the white highlights flashing in the late morning light; the clouds had scuttled away from the sun for just an instant.

"Uhh, sure!" the carrot-head replied. "My name's Kuwabaka - I mean, Kuwabara... heh oops... and this here's Urameshi." He pointed at Suichi, thinking that I didn't know him. "That's Kura- I mean Suichi!"

"Call me Yusuke," Yusuke Urameshi said to me in an irritated tone of voice, then turned to Kuwabara and slugged him on the head. Yusuke whispered something in Kuwabara's ear, and Kuwabara ran off, closely followed by Yusuke, into the men's restroom, where, even in the courtyard, Suichi, the short kid, and I could hear yelling, just not what was being said.

"His name is Hiei," Suichi gestured to the Goth and smiled. "He's a bit antisocial."

"Hn," Hiei replied to this remark coolly, then jumped away to eat his lunch somewhere else, where he might be able to scare some _ningen_ and wouldn't be insulted.

"Well, uh, Suichi, I have a few things to ask you. First off, do you know what a demon is?"

Suichi looked taken aback. "N-no, Nerua, I-I don't... why do you ask?"

"Oh, uh, just, just wondering... second, do you live near 6th avenue?" I had a feeling that I knew what that white and red flash was from this morning.

"Yes, why, Nerua? 6th avenue is the street I live on..." Suichi was puzzled now. His ruby-hued hair glistened even when there was no sunlight.

"Well, I think I saw you this morning, and you saw me doing... something... on the street, and I have to know if it was you, and not someone else whom I don't know," I was almost pleading with him.

"Hm, I guess I'm not as fast as I thought, then. Yes, you are right. I observed you - "He was cut off by the return of Yusuke and Kuwabara. _Nice timing, guys,_ I thought, my crystal blue eyes flashing with impatience. No one noticed except for Suichi.

"Hey Suichi, Nerua! We're back!" Yusuke was grinning nervously. "Where'd Hiei go?"

"That's a good question," Suichi replied. He was spared the trouble of trying to figure that out by the bell, signaling the end of lunch. To me, he murmured quickly, "I'll meet you after school."

Ellen: Yaaaay Suichi! I wonder if I can ever be as smart as him...

Fwooshy: In your dreams.

Ellen: Don't make me have to call Malecasu again! She CAN hurt you, ya know.

Fwooshy: Shutting up.

Cheddar: Good. If we get more reviews, we can do anything you like to any character in YYH, either in these after-word thingies or in a one-shot fic, if they're long enough. Come on, inspiration!


	3. The Meeting

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or Yu Yu Hakusho or Yuu Yuu Hakusho or YÅ« YÅ« Hakusho or anything like that...

The rest of the day passed speedily, for I was strangely more eager to meet Suichi after school than to learn anything on that particular day. Luckily, the teachers didn't give me any homework because it was my first day there.

I was outside after school and wondering where to meet Suichi when he approached me.

"Come with me." He gestured in a vague sort of way, and started walking out of the school. I followed him for some distance, our strange little march ending in a forest clearing with a tree stump in the middle. He sat down on the stump, and I sat on the ground in front of him, cross-legged. "Now, as I was saying at lunchtime, I know you have the power to summon plants; yet you do not know of demons... Hmm... this will be somewhat complicated, but a demon is generally a vile creature, stereotypically characterized by claws, fangs, horns, and strange skin colors."

"What do you mean 'generally' and 'stereotypically'?"

"I'm saying that not all demons are bad. I want to make that very clear for, I am almost certain, you are a demon."

"What?!" I looked at Suichi in astonishment, but oddly not anger. "But, how would you know who would be a demon?"

"Can you demonstrate for me a bit of your power? I would like to see it again." Suichi smiled at me encouragingly. Somehow, this smile made me want to _give_ him all of my powers, but I supposed I could be content with just a small demonstration.

"Okay, Suichi, but... how would you know if I was a demon?" I said as I bade the grass under myself to grow tall enough and thick enough to raise my body so that I was eye level with Suichi. I closed my eyes, and mentally commanded clouds to form: huge, threatening rain clouds that started pouring rain immediately. Fortunately, the branches of the trees had just finished intertwining themselves together to make a leafy canopy that shut out all of the rain, although it pattered on the leaves on the ground around our hideout. A small breeze stirred the clearing, rustling the trees' foliage and Suichi's scarlet hair, and periodic lightning lit our haven. With the breeze I caught a whiff of rose scent coming from Suichi, and I opened my eyes. Suichi watched all of this with something a bit short of amazement, then looked at me and smiled his encouraging smile. "Is that what you were looking for, Suichi?" I blushed. _Maybe the breeze was a bit much..._ I thought to myself. However, Suichi now looked pleased.

"Yes. That was all I needed to know." Suichi paused, closed his eyes, and the stump under him grew, and grew, until it was a live, healthy tree again. I gazed up at Suichi, who was now sitting on a low branch about seven feet up, with amazement and wonder in my eyes, and he looked down at me.

"Suichi, how... Are you...?"

"Yes, Nerua. I am a demon with powers over nature as well. Suichi is a name I adopted while living in this world, but my true name is Kurama. I was a demon fox spirit, living in the Spirit World, but hid myself in the human world to avoid being hunted. If you don't mind me asking, how long have you been aware of your demon powers?"

"Kurama, I will tell you anything." The grass grew more, being supported here and there by blooming wisteria and trumpet vines, until I could look directly into Kurama's emerald eyes once more.

"It was a beautiful, warm, summer night in California, about two years ago, I guess, so I decided to take a swim in a nearby lake. I was underwater playing with the fish while the storm kicked up, and couldn't see the lightning, hear the thunder, or feel the rain. I was made aware of the downpour, however, when the fish suddenly darted away, and a lightningbolt struck the lake I was swimming in." Kurama gasped. I looked down, took a deep breath, blinked slowly, and looked back to Kurama. "I'm sure I died for at least a second. In that second, I know it's overrated, but my life really flashed before my eyes. I saw my friends, my home, my parents, and everything in between. Suddenly, I started to see visions that hadn't happened to me. There were scenes of me meeting some short, seemingly important kid with a pacifier in his mouth, and heading to take a rest, and there were other scenes of me wielding powers of nature, like the trees, rain, lightning, and wind. I understood that this was some kind of decision I needed to make to decide my future, so I felt deep within myself, and decided that it wasn't yet my time to rest. I suddenly became aware of myself, and that's when my whole life was turned around. Because sometimes I've... had trouble controlling my powers, my parents and I have never stayed in the same place for more than a six months since that fateful night." Kurama had his eyes closed and his head down, thinking, but looked up at me when I stopped.

"I see..." he said. "You are a demon, only your powers were hidden from you until the lightning strike, when you encountered enough shock to blow the barrier to your powers away. I'm surprised that you couldn't sense what Hiei and I were."

"Oh, but I could. Sort of, anyway: why do you think I caught your eye in the first place? Something struck me, it felt like alarm bells in my brain, that made me look in the direction of your little group."

Kurama chuckled softly. "Come. It is getting late. We should get home."

I started. "Kurama, I was hoping that you could help me figure out who blocked my powers from me. I'd like to give them a taste of why they hid from me my destiny." I was riling myself up, and knew it, and allowed my body to get caught up in the anger just long enough to heat up the surrounding air, causing the nearest leaves on Kurama's tree to wilt, but not touching my own grassy pedestal.

Kurama was startled. "Fire, as well?" _Hiei will be intrigued to know of this_, Kurama thought to himself.

I looked at myself in awe; I never could do that before. "How did I know all of that? I knew exactly what was going on with me... but I could never control fire before... Kurama, please, help me!" I whispered. Tears were collecting in my eyes, but I would not allow them to spill over...

Kurama drew closer on his branch, and as soon as he knew that I was cooled down enough, he reached out and lightly brushed away the tears' tracks on my left cheek with his fingertips. He drew back his hand quickly, but with a slight hesitation.

"There, there. Some of your demon powers must still be hidden from you, but I have never encountered anyone with such diverse powers. You must be a very special kind of demon, and I believe that you have the potential to do great things, but for the life of me I can't remember what you would be proclaimed in the Spirit World... huh?" Too late Kurama realized that the part of tree branch that he had been sitting on was unsteady, but as the branch cracked and fell, a few hardy tendrils of ivy snaked out from my support and caught him. I smiled down at him, and brought him up to sit next to me on my little pillar of nature.

"Might your parents be demons as well?" Kurama asked with surprising frankness and sudden intuition after a few moments of silent thought, gazing into my eyes.

"No, they can't be - I can't sense in them what I can in you and Hiei."

"Then you _must_ be the special demon, one that appears from the human world, and apparently normal humans, every few hundred years or so, only I'm afraid that your line was started to help demons dominate the human world. Over centuries we demons were weakened, however, and forced into the depths of Spirit World. The line apparently lives on, said to be the descendants of Susanoo, the legendary Shinto god of storms. His sister, Amaterasu the sun goddess, helped all life to prosper, but Susanoo hated it, so created demons to undo her work. Besides, one characteristic of Rainer demons is white hair." He glanced at my natural white highlights that gave a stark contrast to the rest of my mousy hair. "You are the first female Rainer demon that I've heard of, however."

"Cool! That means I'm about Amaterasu's great2000-niece or something! But wait a minute. Is it in the legend if my Rainer predecessors had to overcome obstacles to their powers too?"

Kurama shook his head. "No. I'm afraid the demons were born with their powers, using them immediately to destroy their human parents, their home, and everything in their reach."

I gasped. This was maybe a bit more that I had expected when I sought out Kurama the first time. "Kurama, what can I do? I would like to use my powers, to do good, but not before I find the sorry beings who ever tried to screw with me!" I suddenly stopped, quieting, then stood up and turned around.

I felt other demons approaching.

Ellen: Wow, long chappie.  
  
Fwooshy: Yeah, a whole three pages.  
  
Ellen: Shut up. Here - take a match (lights).  
  
Fwooshy: o.o Fiiiiiiire.  
  
Ellen: Oh yeah, I think I forgot to mention in my bio that Fwooshy is addicted to fire.  
  
Fwooshy: O.O Fiiiiiiiiiiiirrrrrrrrre. (match burns out) ...Huh? Wha? Ellen, you didn't...  
  
Ellen: Ha ha ha ha ha.  
  
Fwooshy: I'll show you to make a fool of me, you vermin! (lunges at Ellen)  
  
Ellen: Vermin? (blocks all punches and kicks with one leg) Fwooshy, you really need to work on your technique. You just keep repeating the same moves over and over.  
  
Fwooshy: Grrrrrr.  
  
Cheddar: Read and review!


	4. New Faces

Ellen: Hi! Errr... sorry about this. Something happened with posting all of my chapters in that this one (which is kinda important by the way) got left out! Here's where I introduce Sakura and Mitsky. This chapter goes right in between chapters 3 and 4!  
  
Fwooshy: For shame. How dare you call yourself a Kurama fangirl, making such a mistake. Tsk tsk tsk.  
  
Ellen: Why you little...!  
  
Cheddar: Remember people, Fwooshy's the yami here! Calm down!  
  
"Excuse me, but would you mind telling us what happened to our tree stump? We kind of liked it the way it was." Two girls had entered the clearing from what would've been my back, if I hadn't sensed them and turned. One was taller, around 5' 7", with eyes almost the shade of green of Kurama's, but slightly more yellow. She had raven-black hair that shone green in the light, and wore a green dress. I noticed a large scabbard attached around the girl's waist, and a black and silver hilt gleamed coldly in the lightning. The other, shorter girl, about 5 feet tall, had blue eyes that were mixed with a slight tinge of gray, with black hair that held glimmers of indigo. She, however, wore black pants and a black tank-top with a silver dragon design embroidered on it. It was she who had spoken.  
  
"Excuse me, but what tree stump are you talking about? This tree has been here for years. I should know. I grew it from a seedling." Kurama leapt down from the tower and landed with grace. I followed suit; immediately, thicker grass cushioned our landing. We stared at the newcomers politely. "So, what brings you to this part of the forest?"  
  
"Forgive our rude intrusion into your scene," the taller girl said with a hint of mischief in her eyes. "I didn't know lovebirds hung out here."  
  
"LOVEBIRDS?" Kurama and I cried in unison, looked at each other in alarm, then glared at the girl. "Listen, you'd better explain yourselves! You've no right calling us that!" I almost looked scared. These girl's spirits set my brain off on an even higher alert than I had felt with Kurama.  
  
They both chuckled softly. The shorter youth introduced them. "My name is Sakura Yotska, and this is my sister, Mitsky." They both had somewhat dark complexions, and held the same pose when standing, but my internal senses reeled especially at Mitsky. "Now it's your turn."  
  
Kurama and I looked at each other and nodded, although I was still a little uneasy with them, so I didn't reveal my true name just yet. "My name is Malecasu, and this is Suichi, a friend." Hm, I thought to myself, how'd I come up with a name like Malecasu?  
  
"Oh, by the way, I see that that little patch of grass at your feet is thicker than it was there before you came down, and there's no way that the vines behind you were a natural formation. I assume that one of you is a demon? Maybe with nature powers?" Mitsky asked. Kurama gasped quietly; I stood and looked at her questioningly.  
  
"What's a demon? I don't know what that word means," I asked as I blocked off most of the exits from the clearing with branches and vines from nearby trees, except the ones that were in Sakura and Mitsky's line of sight, of course, so as not to raise their suspicions.  
  
"Look, don't be cute, we felt a mass of demon energy becoming... unblocked, you might say, eh, Suichi?" Sakura glared right into Kurama's eyes, Mitsky into mine. I returned the stare unflinchingly, crossing my arms.  
  
"I was serious. What's a demon? What are you talking about, 'demon energy'?"  
  
"Hey," Sakura said, turning her head but not her eyes, "I think I recognize you, Suichi. You're Kurama, the legendary fox demon!"  
  
"Thank you. I didn't know I was a celebrity." Kurama actually looked pleased that the girls saw through his disguise.  
  
"Hey Sakura," Mitsky exclaimed suddenly, "I don't think that that energy surge came from Kurama!" She stepped closer to me, closed her eyes, breathed deeply, opened her eyes, looked slyly at Sakura, and nodded towards me. "It was her. Hey! You don't happen to have a price on your head, do ya? I wonder how much you'd go for..."  
  
I started. "How... what -? "  
  
Mitsky grinned. "I'm a demon bounty hunter, kid. I should probably be able to sense a demon when I see one, but I gotta admit, your demon energy's pretty well hidden."  
  
Her occupation slightly scared me. "So I wasn't serious about the demon ignorance part, but what's 'demon energy'?  
  
I think Mitsky could sense my fear as well, because her expression softened. "Don't worry, M-Chan, I'm a demon, too. Demon energy is what gives us our power, and anyway, I only hunt when I'm hired. As I'm currently unemployed, you have nothing to worry about." Mitsky drew her blade; a double-edged sword made of cold steel, honed to a very fine edge and tapered to a slim point. I noticed that the hilt was carved in the shape of a crystal, and made of a substance so black, it almost seemed to suck in light from around it. "Like it?" she inquired. "It's called the Fiend Crystal Blade. Every demon's life it takes makes its hilt a shine bit blacker." She chuckled somewhat sadistically.  
  
"Please, my real name's Nerua," I said apologetically, as I looked at my watch. "Holy sock! It's really late! Good thing I don't have any homework; I need to get home! Sorry guys; I'll meet you here tomorrow, same time!" I unblocked all of the exits that I had closed, and sped off.  
  
Kurama smiled. "So? Here, tomorrow?"  
  
"You bet." Sakura and Mitsky turned and started walking away. "See ya!" They called in unison, and waved without turning.  
  
Kurama walked away from the forest, and called Botan from a pay phone. He only reached her answering machine, but he knew better. "Botan, this is Kurama. I know you're there. Pick up the phone; it might be worth your and Koenma's time."  
  
Ellen: Okay, that last little paragraph was just to get you into the  
  
story again. Please review me, people!! I'm getting lonely... and  
  
depressed... Waahh... ;_;  
  
Cheddar: It doesn't help that she hasn't watched YYH in about a week  
  
now...  
  
Ellen: *cry* *snivel* Kurama...  
  
Fwooshy: *Cough* *cough* Obsessed *cough* *cough*  
  
Ellen: Shut up, you!!! *cry*  
  
Cheddar: .__.v Read and review us, please! Don't forget the sequel to  
  
this story, "Excerpts From Nerua's Diary"!! 


	5. The Dandelion Incident

Ellen: I hope these chapters are all right.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own YYH. I do own a whole bunch of cards and the  
  
GBA game, though! (Stupid game keeps deleting my progress! I've gone through the entire thing about three times now! Can anybody help me?)  
  
Kurama walked away from the forest, and called Botan from a pay phone. He only reached her answering machine, but he knew better. "Botan, this is Kurama. I know you're there. Pick up the phone; it might be worth your and Koenma's time."  
  
The next day was Thursday, which meant more school. In the same class that I had met Kurama in, however, something was totally off-kilter. Sakura and Mitsky were new transfer students to the school! I saw Kurama and the whole gang at lunch.  
  
Fortunately no one else was close to us, thanks to the presence of Hiei, so we could talk freely. They were sitting on the ground in a circle, and I walked over to them, standing next to Kurama, Sakura and Mitsky. Sakura had managed to sidle over to sit next to Hiei.  
  
"Hey guys! ...Er, and girls!"  
  
"Why, hello," Yusuke said, then frowned.  
  
"Hey, are you feeling all right, Nerua? You seem a little... different... Oh, yeah, these are those new students, Sakura and Mitsky."  
  
"Hey," the girls said in unison, smirking. I looked to Kurama, Sakura and Mitsky, and we all grinned wider.  
  
"Actually, the girls and I have already met, and I'm feeling just fine, thanks, considering that I believe that I'm almost at the height of my demon powers."  
  
"SAY WHAT?" cried Yusuke and Kuwabara in unison, and sprang to their feet.  
  
"Suichi, do you know anything about this?!" Hiei stayed where he was but looked intrigued.  
  
"Please, call me Kurama now. The girls know. Why don't you give everyone else a taste of what you showed me?" he asked me. Yusuke and Kuwabara reluctantly sat down, but kept wary eyes on me.  
  
"Whatever you say, Kurama." I looked to the others. "It will start to rain in exactly two minutes, then alternate between rain, sleet, and snow every ten seconds for three minutes."  
  
All of the dead leaves on the trees around us came back to life, only to fall perfectly to the ground by precision sparks emanating from my body. They then burst into little flames, but at that exact moment the rain started to fall, followed closely by sleet and snow, preventing them from igniting the dead leaves on the ground.  
  
"I would advise for you to move," I said to the boys across from me. They shifted aside, and none too soon, because just then, a lightning bolt struck the ground where the three had just sat. However, three tiny sparks jumped out and gave Yusuke, Hiei and Kuwabara a slight shock.  
  
"Aahh! Kurama, are you sure this girl's safe?! She could kill us at any time!" Kuwabara wailed.  
  
Hiei leapt to his feet, dashed behind me, and within a split second had his katana around my neck. "Hiei, Hiei, didn't anyone ever tell you not to play with knives?" I mentally commanded the dandelions under Hiei's feet to burst into seeds, and all of the seeds flew up, and began poking the unlucky demon. Hiei withdrew his sword from my neck, startled yet annoyed, and began to swing wildly at the seeds, missing them all. He kept this up for about six minutes, until he was forced to drop to one knee from exhaustion. The seeds continued pestering the poor youkai, even as five of us who hadn't gotten on my bad side were rolling on the ground in laughter.  
  
"Ha ha ha, yes Kuwabara, hehe, she's perfectly fine... AHAHAHAHAHA!!!" Kurama gasped, as Hiei had given two last swings, and collapsed into a heap. Sakura was the only one who was not enjoying the little dance. She rushed over to his side, and helped to get rid of some of the dandelion seeds by flicking small sparks at them from her hands, and blowing the soot away with a gentle zephyr. Mitsky decided to be nice to her sister, and helped to dispel the seeds by freezing them in shining ice crystals which emanated from her hands as she touched the seeds.  
  
"How could you be so mean to poor Hiei?" Sakura asked as she helped Hiei up. Hiei was spared from further embarrassment by the end-of-lunch bell. Everyone else couldn't help but snigger, though, as he shakily got up and walked away; about half of the dandelion seeds had stuck to Hiei's back and hair.  
  
Ellen: Poor Hiei. I almost feel sorry for him.  
  
Fwooshy: But if you did, you never would have written this part!  
  
Ellen: Very true. (high fives Fwooshy) I'm sorry to all you Hiei  
  
fangirls. Remember, Kurama's mine!  
  
Cheddar: Read and review! ...Hey wait, that's all I ever say!  
  
Ellen: Well, what would you like to say?  
  
Cheddar: Ummmm... Can I have some ice cream?  
  
Ellen and Fwooshy: *Sigh* 


	6. She's not his girlfriend

Ellen: Hey! Hopefully the formatting is fixed now! My friend Sai is  
  
taking care of it for me. For that person who asked me to kill off  
  
Kuwabaka, I can't actually do it in the story (darn it) because it  
  
would mess up a whole bunch of stuff, but I hope this will make you  
  
happy:  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own YYH.  
  
Kuwabaka: Whew.  
  
Ellen: But I do own a match.  
  
Kuwabaka: Um...  
  
Fwooshy: And another tank of gasoline.  
  
Kuwabaka: Uh, Urameshi...  
  
Cheddar: A roll of duct tape would compliment them nicely, don't you  
  
think, guys? (rolls duct tape around the baka, pours gasoline, lights  
  
match)  
  
Ellen: (sunbathing in a lawn chair sipping lemonade while watching  
  
Kuwabara run around frantically trying to put out the fire) I never  
  
get tired of this!  
  
I'm also sorry about the wait! I've been really busy!  
  
Later that evening, at the appropriate time and place, Kurama and I walked into the clearing together at the exact same time Sakura and Mitsky arrived. Little did we know that we had other visitors.  
  
"Hey, long time no see," Sakura joked. "So. How's life?"  
  
"Hmmm..." I said sarcastically, "uh, hello? I just found out I'm a demon! How do you think my life is?! Argh, I'm sorry Sakura, it's just that, well, according to legends, I'm supposed to destroy all that I touch, but I feel that something went wrong, somehow... huh?"  
  
Something was tickling the top of my head. I reached up to feel if there was something there. Under my hair, I felt two tiny lumps. Everybody was looking at me, so I explained, "Just an itch."  
  
"Well, why don't you clue us in on your life now?" Mitsky asked of me. "Afterwards we'll tell you about ourselves."  
  
Later...  
  
"..." Sakura and Mitsky had long since sat down, gazing at Kurama and me (who were telling my story, and who were also sitting down), their mouths open in awe.  
  
"What do you think? Do I look like a demon who is an almost all-powerful threat to the entire human world?" I smirked.  
  
"...Well, um, no..." Mitsky and Sakura quickly shook their heads to regain their composure. "Now it's our turn to tell our life stories, though I'm afraid that it's not half as exciting as yours. Mitsky, would you like to go first?"  
  
"Why, thank you, Sakura."  
  
Even later...  
  
"Wow, I see you guys have gotten around," I said with a smile. However, the smile quickly faded as there was a rustle in the trees, and before any of us could react, Hiei was standing on the ground in front of us, followed by a blue-haired woman in a pink kimono who was riding an oar that was floating about four feet off the ground.  
  
By now, even that couldn't surprise me.  
  
"Hey, Hiei. This your girlfriend?" I said in a wry voice.  
  
"SILENCE! Grrrrr..." If looks could kill, I'd be a smoldering pile of ash, thanks to Hiei's firey demon powers.  
  
"Actually, my name's Botan, and I've been waiting to meet you for quite a while now!" the girl said in a happy, high voice, with a slight British accent. "Rainer demons are always welcomed in the Spirit World. However, Kurama, I'm afraid you've left out one important detail from Nerua's education." Botan frowned, and held up her index finger, her voice no longer joyful. "All of the Rainer demons that have been created into this world have been male. But you, Nerua, are a girl, and that has created some problems." Botan put down her hand. "I saw you feel your head a while ago. Under extra emotional distress, such as your outburst a while ago, well..." Botan had pushed in front of Hiei, and he was getting impatient to say what he wanted to say.  
  
Hiei ran in front of her. "Forget her, what I want is revenge!" He drew his katana. I sighed. "Hiei, didn't you learn anything from this afternoon? Oh well, don't blame me for this..." Grass snaked up from the ground and caught Hiei by his arms and legs, and held him to the ground, while a small rain cloud formed above his head, showering him with hailstones, and occasionally small lightningbolts. "Now Botan, what were you saying?"  
  
Hiei struggled to break free of the grass, but to no avail. He even tried using his Fist of the Mortal Flame attack, but he couldn't reach the grass bonds, and the hail doused the attack before too long.  
  
"Oh, poor Hiei..." Sakura whispered under her breath.  
  
"Oh, nothing, never mind. It was nice to meet you, Nerua! I have to report this to my boss! See ya!" She flew up out of the top of the forest on her oar, and quickly disappeared into the stars in the night sky.  
  
"What's with her?" I asked the rest. Mitsky and Sakura shrugged, but Kurama chuckled while Hiei still struggled with the grass, soaking wet from melted hailstones, shouting loudly although no one was paying any attention to him except Sakura, who kept stealing glances at him.  
  
"Oh, she's just who humans think of as the Grim Reaper. Her boss is Koenma, the ruler of Spirit World, the human equivalent of heaven," Kurama explained.  
  
Suddenly, he stiffened. "I think Hiei and I need to go. Right away."  
  
"Finally! Nerua, you heard him, GET ME OUT OF HERE!" Hiei was getting frantic.  
  
"But Kurama, where are you going?" I asked as I mentally loosened Hiei from the grass. He immediately sprang up, and joined Kurama at the edge of the clearing. The hail cloud followed him.  
  
"Can we come too?"  
  
"If that is what you desire. But we must hurry." The five of us ran off to the city, where we saw the end of Toguro scaring the crud out of Yusuke, and explaining the Dark Tournament.  
  
"My goodness..." Kurama breathed. He and Hiei obviously knew what was going on, but the rest of us were clueless, so Mitsky asked.  
  
"What's going on, Kurama?" "No good, I'm afraid. That demon's name is Toguro. He possesses strength unimaginable, and I believe that Yusuke has just been invited to the Dark Tournament." At that moment, the younger Toguro brother walked by and looked at us, and all five of us fixed him with an icy stare. Even from a distance, he seemed to emanate a powerful, evil energy.  
  
"So Kurama, Hiei, I assume you'll be competing as well? And what about your little friends? Will they accompany you?"  
  
"Hmph. We can speak for ourselves. Of course we will be joining Team Urameshi." Sakura spoke for all of us.  
  
Toguro turned away. "The tournament will be in two months. For your own sakes you'd better be there." After Toguro left, Kurama and Hiei explained to us about the Dark Tournament, and what would be at stake, and warned us not to come, but not one of us could be deterred from at least trying to attend. All of a sudden, I noticed something small sticking out of Hiei's hair.  
  
"Hey, Hiei, what's that in your hair?"  
  
"Huh?" Hiei scratched his head, and a dandelion seed floated down to the ground.  
  
"Um, heh, heh, Hiei, you've got even more dandelion seeds stuck in your hair!"  
  
"What?!? Get them out! Get them out!" Hiei began to frantically rub his hair, but this only succeeded in bringing more seeds to the surface of his hair. Everyone in attendance laughed, except Sakura, and she, once again, was the only one who attempted to help the tormented demon get the seeds out of his apparently highly combed-over and gelled hair.  
  
Ellen: Heh heh. The second dandelion incident.  
  
Hiei: Why I oughtta...  
  
Ellen: Now, now Hiei, be careful of what you say. Malecasu?  
  
Malecasu: Yes?  
  
Ellen: If Hiei starts acting up, you know what to do.  
  
Malecasu: With pleasure. (cracks knuckles)  
  
Hiei: *gulp*  
  
Cheddar: Read and review, please! 


	7. Teleportation

Ellen: Another chappie up.  
  
Fwooshy: It's about time!  
  
Cheddar: Finally!  
  
Ellen: Hey, you know I was busy!  
  
Fwooshy: Yeah, but we still won't let you live it down.  
  
Ellen: Nooo...  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own YYH.  
  
The two months passed very quickly. Everyone in Team Urameshi wanted to be in top physical condition to pound Toguro, so we trained hard.  
  
Finally, the day to catch the boat to Hanging-Neck Island arrived. Kurama, Hiei, Kuwabara, Sakura, Mitsky, and I were all at the dock, along with many other pretty unusual characters, but Yusuke was late, as usual, with who was supposed to be the fifth member of Team Urameshi.  
  
The captain of the boat had just announced boarding when they finally showed up. The fifth member was very short, about three feet tall, and had his or her face covered by a cloth so as to be utterly unrecognizable.  
  
"Hey guys," Yusuke said to no one in particular, then beckoned Mitsky, Sakura and me away from the group. "Now, I know this is gonna sound kinda weird, but Nerua, Sakura, Mitsky, one of you please take Kuwabara's place in the competition! I don't care who, but that baka will just get in our way! I know that you girls are powerful, and so are Hiei, Kurama, and the dude I brought with me, but Kuwabaka, I just can't stand him for that long! Hurry up, one of you, and get on the boat before..."  
  
"Hey, guys, what'cha waiting for? Come on!" Kuwabara was already on the boat.  
  
"Ooooohh, that Kuwabaka..." Yusuke closed his eyes and balled his fists. "Kuwabara, get back here!" he yelled.  
  
"What're you talking about, Urameshi? I'm going now! Once you're on the boat you can't leave!"  
  
"It's all right, Yusuke. We'll get there somehow." I looked behind me at Kurama, then back at the seething Yusuke. "You'll definitely need our help with that baka, and the tournament if he's still as weak as he was yesterday."  
  
"You can't come with us on the boat now, you know. Only the fighters can leave here." Yusuke almost looked apologetic.  
  
"Oh, that's okay. I have other ways of getting where I'm needed." I winked at everyone, and smiled. "We'll be seeing all of you soon!" After the fighters and the boat had left, Mitsky and Sakura turned to me.  
  
"What was that about?" they asked me.  
  
"Hmm... I dunno... Weird..." I thought for a moment. "Anyway, we should be thinking of ways to get to Hanging-Neck Island. I have a feeling that we're going to be needed. We should also be training some more."  
  
All of a sudden, I felt like I needed to get a stick to poke around in the dirt with, and the perfect stick was across the clearing. Without any warning, I was there! I picked up the stick, and looked behind me, surprised, at Mitsky and Sakura, who were standing with their mouths open, bewildered.  
  
"You never told us you could teleport!" they exclaimed in unison.  
  
"I didn't know I could!" I shot back at them. I walked back to the demon sisters, and started poking around in the dirt with my new stick.  
  
"Now, let's get this straight. Exactly what powers do we all have again?" Sakura inquired.  
  
Mitsky began. "I have powers over ice and darkness, and I wield the Fiend Crystal Blade, but hand-to-hand combat is my favorite style of fighting."  
  
I responded next. "I'm not exactly sure of the limits of my power yet, but so far I can make plants grow to my bidding, lightning strike at will, summon precipitation, as in rain or hail, create wind, heat my body and surroundings, and apparently I can teleport."  
  
"And power over the four elements is mine," Sakura finished. "Earth, fire, water, and wind. Well, now that we've got that settled, how do you propose we get to Hanging-Neck Island?" She turned to Mitsky and me.  
  
I had been practicing my teleportation with Mitsky as she spoke, and currently we were up in the air, as I had miscalculated and missed the ground. Mitsky fell to earth on top of me, so my response was somewhat strained. "After a few days I should have this power under control, but I can't really transport more than myself very accurately." Mitsky got off of me and helped me up. "I'm not sure how long it will take to be able to teleport all of us all of the way to Hanging-Neck Island, but it should be soon." Mitsky and I disappeared, and reappeared next to Sakura.  
  
"That teleport seemed good enough," Sakura said. I sweatdropped, and rubbed the back of my head.  
  
"Much as I hate to say this, that was a fluke. I've never done that before." Mitsky and Sakura sighed, but I sank to my knees. "Whew, that took more out of me than I thought. Would you guys check to make sure I got home when you get there? I'm not sure I'll have enough strength to call you." I closed my eyes and teleported away.  
  
I opened my eyes to see Kurama gazing down at me. I couldn't read the expression in his eyes. We seemed to be on the boat that the group had left on, although I couldn't be sure. I wasn't certain whether or not I was dreaming. "Kurama...?" I murmured. He took a sharp breath, and turned behind him.  
  
"Yusuke! Yusuke!! Nerua's awake!" The other four members of Team Urameshi came over to me.  
  
"Nerua, how'd you get here?" Yusuke inquired.  
  
"...Yusuke... Kurama... I was hoping you'd tell me..." I sighed, and fell into unconsciousness once more.  
  
Ellen: Tee hee!  
  
Kurama: ...  
  
Fwooshy: Poke around in the dirt with a stick?  
  
Ellen: Oh yeah! Hasn't that happened to any of you readers? You see just the right stick, and some nice dirt... Oh, before I completely forget about it, now that I've introduced all of my OC's, here's a bio...  
  
Original Character bios!  
  
Name: Nerua Teraf/ Malecasu  
  
Age: 14 years/ 15+  
  
Height: 5' 04"/ 7' 01"  
  
Weight: Do you really want to know??  
  
Hair Color: Brown with white on top/Silver  
  
Eye Color: Blue/Neon purple  
  
Powers: Plants, rain, hail, lightning, fire, wind,  
  
teleportation  
  
Blood Type: O+  
  
Personality: Nerua is very innocent and friendly. She's also  
  
happy pretty much all of the time, to the point that she  
  
could be called bubbly, but you'd better not compare her to  
  
Botan! Nerua's a real powerhouse when she gets mad and  
  
transforms into Malecasu.  
  
Created from: Me!  
  
Name: Mitsky Yotska  
  
Age: 15 years  
  
Height: 5' 07"  
  
Weight: Wouldn't you like to know.  
  
Hair Color: Black that shines green  
  
Eye Color: Yellow-green  
  
Powers: Ice, darkness, martial arts, swordswomanship  
  
Blood Type: AB  
  
Personality: Mitsky is somewhat mysterious, but very friendly  
  
once you have earned her trust. Sometimes Mitsky tends to act  
  
before she thinks, however. She's Sakura's sister.  
  
Created from: my friend Sai!  
  
Name: Sakura Yotska  
  
Age: 14  
  
Height: 5' 00"  
  
Weight: None of your business.  
  
Hair Color: Black that shines blue  
  
Eye Color: Gray-blue  
  
Powers: Wind, fire, water, earth  
  
Blood Type: B  
  
Personality: Sakura's kind, but don't mess with her when  
  
she's angry! Always calm and cool, Sakura thinks before she  
  
acts, and is the level-headed one of the group. She's  
  
Mitsky's sister.  
  
Created from: my friend Lindsey! 


	8. The Good Dream

Ellen: Grrraaahhhh! Is my formatting fixed yet? Sai was supposed to  
  
work on it for me... If it is thank you Sai! If it isn't then why the heck not?!  
  
Cheddar: Now, now, Ellen, you know she's had a lot to do.  
  
Ellen: Yeah, sorry Sai! Please read and review my Digimon and Yu-Gi-Oh  
  
fanfics!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own YYH (wish I did!).  
  
When I came to my senses again, Mitsky, Sakura, and Botan were standing over me. I was in my bed at home. Fortunately, my parents were on vacation, so they weren't around to ask embarrassing questions. As I opened my eyes, they all smiled, and early morning sunlight streamed through the windows.  
  
"N-Chan! You're awake!" Mitsky exclaimed. I sat up.  
  
"Yeah... barely... I had a dream about the guys..." I rubbed my eyes. "So what's new? How long have I been conked out?"  
  
"Two days," Sakura responded. "We were really worried about you!"  
  
"However, Nerua," Botan interjected, "that wasn't just a dream you had. Yusuke contacted me with his Communication Mirror and told me that you were actually there. That's when you woke up and disappeared. I think that Kurama's especially worried about you! Why don't you call him, to let him know that you're all right?" I blushed. Then, Botan handed me what looked to be a compact makeup kit, but when I opened it, there was a mirror inside. After a few seconds, Yusuke's face appeared in it.  
  
"Hey Yusuke!"  
  
"W-wh-what?! Nerua, you're awake!"  
  
"No, Yusuke, I'm still asleep. Can't you hear me snoring? Anyway, could I talk to Kurama, please?"  
  
"Sure." A few seconds later, Kurama's face replaced Yusuke's. His eyes lit up when he saw me.  
  
"Nerua! You're finally awake!" He paused, and concern flooded his face. "What happened? How did you get on the boat, anyway?"  
  
"Well," I blushed again, "I can teleport. I had just discovered it the day you left, and I practiced too much too soon, I guess, so I tried one last teleport home before falling asleep. I guess I was dreaming, and before I reached my destination, my mind diverted my path to you." I blushed once more. A warm smile of relief and happiness replaced the worry on Kurama's face.  
  
"I'm glad you're all right, Nerua. Just make sure you don't try teleporting while half-asleep again, or who knows where you'll end up!" We laughed, and said a long goodbye before hanging up. As I was giving the mirror back to Botan, a wave of courage, strength, and determination washed over me, and I sprang out of bed.  
  
"I'm going to go train some more, guys. Thanks for the support! See ya!" Mitsky tried to protest, but I raced from the room, and through the window the three could see me sprinting to the forest nearby.  
  
That night I dreamed of Kurama again. He and I were sitting in his hotel room, and he told me of everything that had happened in the previous three days. Kurama's battles versus Roto, Gama, Touya, and Ura Urashima tore at my heart, and I think I ran over and hugged him. He was somewhat surprised, and that's where the dream ended. That's when I knew that I had to get to the Dark Tournament, no matter what the cost.  
  
The next day, I began training early in the morning. I began about two hours before dawn, and practiced all day. I'm not sure what Mitsky and Sakura were doing all day, but I went without stopping until about noon, when they suddenly appeared and forced me to eat something and take a nap.  
  
I must have slept for at least a few hours after that, and I dreamed once more of Kurama filling me in on Team Urameshi's plight. I learned of even more bad news: their fifth fighter had died, and they would be disqualified if they could not come up with another. I woke up with a start, and sat up.  
  
The sun was setting, and no one else was in the room. I felt as refreshed, ready, and determined as I had ever been, so I decided to go to the Dark Tournament to support my team. I got out of bed, and wandered around my house, looking for people.  
  
There was a note on the refrigerator:  
  
"Dear Nerua,  
  
Mitsky got another bounty call. We'll be out for an hour or two. There's gelatin in the fridge.  
  
;) Sakura & Mitsky"  
  
'Fine. I'll leave without them', I thought to myself. 'I can't wait for them any longer...'  
  
"We're home!" Mitsky and Sakura walked through the front door at that moment.  
  
"Hello. Tell me, how did you get a key to my house?" The sisters sweat- dropped.  
  
"Um, hi Nerua... Mitsky, where did you get this key?" Sakura asked.  
  
"Me? It was you who found it!" They began squabbling, but I broke them apart.  
  
"Okay! Okay! It's not important! Anyway..." I gave the two a serious look. "...We need to get to the Dark Tournament. Right away. Team Urameshi's in danger of being disqualified, and I'm not sure we'd like it if that happened." I filled them in on all of my dreams to date.  
  
"Are you sure you can transport all three of us, N-Chan? You just woke up after two days; you shouldn't exert yourself." Mitsky was genuinely concerned; I was touched.  
  
"Mitsky, we don't really have a choice now. Kura- I mean, Team Urameshi- is in trouble... Whatever. I'm leaving right now! We don't have time for this!" I walked out the door. Mitsky and Sakura looked at each other, then raced after me.  
  
"Hey wait! Come back here!" They found me outside, sitting on the lawn. I smiled warmly up at them, but the moment passed quickly, as I closed my eyes, and concentrated on where we needed to be. As I felt myself disappearing, I managed to whisper to no one in particular, "Now, here I come."  
  
Nerua: How /did/ they get a key to my house?  
  
Ellen/Fwooshy/Cheddar: ??? Who knows???  
  
Cheddar: Read and review, please! 


	9. Finally Awake!

Ellen: Hi again. Oh, and for the person who signed in as "Fallen",  
  
ewwwwww!!!!! I HATE HATE HATE HATE yaoi, ESPECIALLY KuramaxHiei!!! I really don't understand why people do that to my kitsune! Besides, he's mine!  
  
Fwooshy: Calm down now. Don't give yourself a stroke.  
  
Ellen: Oh fine. Hey, with this chapter everyone will actually meet  
  
Malecasu!  
  
Fwooshy: She's so awesome!  
  
Ellen: Also, I'm gonna post another fic with these characters after I  
  
get a little more into the story. I like it a lot, so...  
  
Cheddar: Read and review!!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own YYH (hey Mr. Togashi! The only things I want  
  
for Christmas are the rights to Kurama!).  
  
As I regained consciousness, and opened my eyes, I couldn't see anything. This scared me for a moment, until my eyes adjusted to what I realized must be the darkness of night. I had been lying on the ground in the middle of a clearing, and Mitsky and Sakura were still sprawled out near me. I gently woke them, and wordlessly we explored the region in which we had materialized. As something appeared on the horizon in front of us, I cried out. "Hey! Look at that! Is it a stadium?"  
  
"That's what it seems to be," Mitsky said thoughtfully.  
  
"So let's go!" We ran toward the stadium, and as we got closer, we could hear the roar of demonic cheering. When we got to the entrance, however, a short, green, reptilian guard stopped our trio.  
  
"Do you have your ticketsssss?" the creature hissed at us. I looked at him, and cocked my head slightly to one side.  
  
"Tickets? We don't have any tickets," I stated innocently. I straightened up, clasped my hands together under my chin, and my face took on an appearance of pleading. "Couldn't you just let us in this once, please? Team Urameshi really needs us!"  
  
The guard looked stunned. "I'm sorry little human girl, but rules are rules."  
  
"Well, we're here to help Team Urameshi, so get out of our way!" I shouted, and Mitsky, Sakura and I proceeded to try to beat him up without using our powers, so he wouldn't remember us and recognize us while we were fighting in the tournament. However, he put up a good fight, even against three opponents.  
  
"Don't you think that I've seen thisssss kind of thing before? I wouldn't sssstill be standing here if I wasn't tough!" I started to get a little ticked.  
  
"I said, get out of our way!!" An aura of heat surrounded me, and I fired it at the guard by thrusting out my hands, my palms facing toward the unlucky demon. Sakura and Mitsky chuckled.  
  
"Nerua, you sure have a way with words!" Sakura said jokingly.  
  
My hands cooled down, and I placed them by my side, but a fiery red-orange hue blended with the azure in my eyes to create an eerie fluorescent purple. Orange ears sprouted from the top of my head. I looked down and gave the singed guard a look of cold unemotional glare. He was frozen with fear to the spot.  
  
"N-no... no entry..." he sputtered, and collapsed on the ground, unconscious. Mitsky and Sakura were standing just behind me and to my right, and I turned my head to look at them in the same emotionless glare. They no longer joked, but instead gazed at me with fear and awe.  
  
"Nerua... what's happened to you?!" Sakura inquired.  
  
"Nerua? She is no longer here. My name is Malecasu. (A/N: It's pronounced Mahl-eh-CAHS-u!)" Malecasu's voice sounded almost like my voice, except it had lost most of its emotion, and had deepened slightly.  
  
"Malecasu?!" Sakura and Mitsky seemed rooted to where they stood.  
  
"Yes. I am the true Rainer demon, the one that should have appeared first in this world and fulfilled my purpose for being, instead of that human girl," she sneered at the mention of me, "but something happened..."  
  
Suddenly, Malecasu's ears retracted, and her eyes purified to my natural cerulean hue. I looked around as I became normal, and blinked. "Hey Sakura, Mitsky? Where are we?" I gasped as I glimpsed the fried guard out of the corner of my eye, and ran over to him. "Oh my goodness! What happened to this poor guy?!" I looked questioningly at Mitsky and Sakura, who were staring at me in surprise.  
  
As we looked around the stadium for our friends the demon sisters filled me in on the previous few minutes. I was horrified, and a little scared.  
  
"You know, guys, I really can't remember anything from then except the feeling of... having somebody else in my body... Malecasu... hey, that was the name that I told you was really mine when we first met!"  
  
"Whoa," Sakura breathed. "Can you remember any other time when something strange has happened to you?"  
  
"Hmmm..." I tried to think and walk at the same time, but I kept running into other demons, and they were giving us weird looks, and saying mean things. This got me somewhat annoyed. Sakura and Mitsky knew what was going to happen, and they tried to calm me down, before...  
  
"Hello again, you fools. Don't you realize that nothing can keep me away? As long as Nerua is breathing, then I, too, shall live within her. You see, I am Nerua. I am her life, her past, and her destiny. If you interfere with me, then Nerua will be the one who is punished." Malecasu turned away from them and strode down the corridor in the direction we were first heading. "I believe the ones you are searching for are this way."  
  
Any demon that got in my way this time... well, let's just say it wasn't for very long. Apparently, now that I was aware of Malecasu's existence, I could sense her and fight with her mind, but her mind had much more skill and strength than mine. I could only look on helplessly as Malecasu used me for her own demonic purposes.  
  
"Hey Mitsky," Sakura whispered as they quietly followed me. Malecasu's ears pricked up, but the giant demon acted like she hadn't heard. "Did Malecasu have a tail before?"  
  
"No," Mitsky whispered back. Malecasu had apparently grown a beautiful orange fox's tail, and it stuck out from under my shirt. Our trio walked in silence for a while, until we came to a closed door to our right.  
  
"Let's go. The one Nerua seeks is inside. She's practically yelling it at me in our mind. I'm only doing this to shut her up, so let's get this over with," Malecasu said, sounding bored and exasperated.  
  
Mitsky hurriedly opened the door, and she and her sister walked through the door to see the four surviving members of Team Urameshi, plus Botan, a tall, brown-haired woman, a young, female, blue-haired demon, and another girl whom I had seen hanging around at school with Yusuke, when he actually bothered to show up. They turned as the door opened, and gasped to see the two. Hiei even glanced in our general direction, and Sakura stood up a little straighter.  
  
"Sakura! Mitsky! How did you get here?" Kuwabara exclaimed. A rabble of questions and voices broke out, but Sakura quieted them all. Botan paid special attention.  
  
"I think that there is someone who can explain that better than I can. Just please be careful around her. She's touchy!" she said worriedly and turned around to find...  
  
"Hey everybody! Hahaha! It's so great to see you all!" Malecasu was gone, and I was just standing innocently in the doorframe, waving, slightly confused about where I was again but happy to see my friends. Yusuke spoke out.  
  
"So Sakura, you think Nerua's touchy? You should see Yukina's brother... Oh, right, you guys don't know Keiko," he pointed at the girl he hung out with, who was standing right next to him, taking in the scene, "Yukina," the blue-haired demon bowed slightly, "and Shizuru." He gestured to the tall woman. "This is Nerua, Sakura, and Mitsky."  
  
"It's a pleasure to meet you three. I'm Kazuma's sister," Shizuru explained.  
  
"You came at the right time, girls. We need your help more than ever now." Kurama had stepped forward, and smiled at us. However, the smile contained no real happiness, except when he glanced at me. I was intrigued about that.  
  
"Well then Kurama, when is your next match?" I asked, stepping a bit closer to him.  
  
"I believe it's tomorrow. We're in the finals." He frowned. "However, we need another member, quickly, or else we will be disqualified."  
  
"We know, Kurama." I sighed, then yawned. "Whew, I think it's getting late. We should head off to wherever you guys sleep here. We're going to need a good rest for tomorrow."  
  
Ellen: Doo dee doo... Hee hee! Stupid reptile guard guy. I get all power-  
  
high when I write these kinds of things!!  
  
Fwooshy: Let's go destroy stuff!!  
  
Ellen: Cool!! ...Wait, darn you Fwooshy! You're taking advantage of me again!  
  
Fwooshy: Now we're even.  
  
Ellen: Grrrr...  
  
Cheddar: Read and review! 


	10. The Painful Dream

Ellen: Okay, Sai told me that this would work, so hopefully this  
chappie won't just be one big paragraph!  
  
Fwoosjy: Muahahaha!!! I LOVE this chapter!! Malecasu so totally  
ROCKS!!!  
  
Ellen: Sigh...  
  
Everyone went to sleep very fast after we reached the hotel and finished introducing ourselves. I dreamed once more, but this time, instead of Kurama, I gazed for the first time at Malecasu; however, it was only the Malecasu that had managed to appear as me. I had yet to experience her full demon form. She was standing in front of me, and facing me with the emotionless glare.  
  
"Hello, human," she greeted me coldly.  
  
"Hello. Now, I believe that we must come to some agreements if we are to live in the same body together without destroying ourselves," I began. "First, was it you who spoke to me on my first day in Japan?"  
  
Malecasu nodded. "Yes. I was just trying to see what your reaction would be. Humans are so boring sometimes, but fun to manipulate." She chuckled. "Now I have a question to ask you," she said. "What is the relationship between you and this Kurama? You were very eager to meet him today."  
  
I sweatdropped and blushed. "Well, heh heh, I'm just kind of worried about him, that's all..."  
  
Malecasu looked amused.  
  
I regained my composure. "There's another thing. I'm really impressed by your power and everything, but it isn't good for you to just come out any time you want, you know? I mean, you really had Mitsky and Sakura scared. If we have to live together, we should be a team, and that means sharing everything, even pain and emotions. I realize that that might be asking a lot from a solitary demon like you, but, like you said before, you are me, and if we can't work together, neither of us will be able to survive a major battle." I took a deep breath; I didn't mean to unload like that, but I really meant what I said.  
  
"No." Malecasu's voice took on an almost holier-than-thou attitude.  
  
"What?!" I was taken aback.  
  
"I said no. You're just a human. You're not worthy of being partners with me, the legendary Rainer demon. I think I'll do whatever I like with your body. It's nice being as inconspicuous as a little human girl." Malecasu's eyes gleamed with malevolence. She lunged at me, and I couldn't dodge fast enough to avoid my left knee being lacerated by her short yet razor-sharp claws. I woke up as a searing pain filled my left leg. Nothing had touched my clothes, but I rolled up my pant leg to find blood oozing from five deep cuts in my skin. I could hear maniacal laughter echoing through my head for a few seconds, then silence. It was still very early in the morning, but I couldn't get back to sleep. I bandaged my leg, and then simply sat awake, waiting for the others to wake up and get ready for the day, and thinking about how I'd survive.  
  
Fwooshy: So? What'd ya think? Huh? Huh? Huh?  
  
Ellen: Be patient with the potential reviewers now! Please review me,  
people! I haven't gotten one in a long time! Pretty please with a  
cherry on top?  
  
Fwooshy: Or Malecasu will burn you alive!  
  
Malecasu: Say what now? (gives death glare to Fwooshy)  
  
Fwooshy: Heh heh, nothing... read and review!  
  
Cheddar: Hey, that's my line! 


	11. Very Funny, Botan

Ellen: Thank you SOO MUCH Kayko/Bobby! I was starting to get depressed! Nobody wuvved me!  
  
Cheddar: There, there. People care about you!  
  
Ellen: Oh, Cheddar! Sometimes having multiple personalities really pays off!  
  
Fwooshy: ...grumble... What am I, chopped liver?  
  
Ellen: and Cheddar: YES!!  
  
Fwooshy: ...grumble gripe...  
  
Everyone walked to the stadium in total silence, for we knew that it was the last time we would be seeing it, whichever way the day's matches went. "Hellooooooo, demons, and welcome to the Dark Tournament's Final round!" Juri stood in the arena, addressing the crowd. "Yesterday, the two finalist teams were given a day to find a fifth member. Today, we'll be seeing Team Urameshi," boos broke out in the audience as we marched onto the field, "battling it out with the favorites to win, Team Toguro!" The throng of demons cheered loudly while the team strode out confidently. The leader of Team Urameshi gave his group a pep talk before the match. "All right, guys, this is it. I know; that's kind of a cliché. Now, we can only have five team members, so who will be our fifth competitor?" He looked to Mitsky, Sakura, and I. "You guys can decide on your own." Without hesitation, Mitsky and Sakura responded in unison, "Nerua should fight." "I like a good fight as much as anyone, but-" Mitsky added. "-She's definitely the strongest out of the three of us," Sakura finished. I was almost overcome with emotion. "Mitsky... Sakura..." I ran over to them, but before I could reach them, they held out their arms and stopped me. "Don't even think about it," they stated dryly in unison. "Have the teams come up with a fifth member?" Juri was looking at us expectantly. I stepped forward. "Yes. Nerua Teraf," I declared confidently. As soon as I had identified myself, from the shadows on the other side of the ring stepped the figure of a tall man. He was very thin and pale, with long black hair, and a scar over his right eye. "I will be Team Toguro's fifth member. My name is Sakyo." He was very soft-spoken. "All right! Now that that's settled, let the finals begin! Who will be the first fighters?" From Team Toguro's side, a different demon with long, black hair and a mask over his mouth and nose stepped forward and onto the ring. He projected a clearly evil presence into the air. Kurama obviously recognized him, as he gasped quietly. I went over to him. "Kurama, what's wrong?" I asked him quietly. Kurama's face had paled a shade or two. He shook his head slightly, causing his crimson hair to twirl around his face elegantly, and snapped out of his daze. "That demon is called Karasu. We have... met before," he whispered to me. Then, he addressed the rest of the team. "I must fight Karasu," he said gravely, and walked slowly to the arena. I called out to him before he reached the platform. "Kurama! Are you sure you want to do this? I could fight him!" I really didn't want Kurama to be hurt. I didn't care about any tournament; I just wanted to whisk him away with me to somewhere where we could both be happy... "No, Nerua. This is the way it must be," he responded, turning his head slightly to look at me as he did so. I thought I could make out a brief flicker of a smile, but in an instant it was gone. Then, he turned to Karasu once more. "Okay," Juri exclaimed, "Let the first match of the Dark Tournament finals, Karasu versus Kurama, begin!" She hastily got out of firing range. All I could do was watch from the sidelines as Karasu tortured Kurama. Karasu eventually fell to Kurama's plants, but even my new enemy's death couldn't purge the fact that Kurama was seriously injured, and had lost! I ran up to the ring as soon as the match was over, and knelt beside him. "Kurama? Are you... are you going to be okay...?" I practically whispered as I carried him from the ring and set him on the ground. "Nerua, I would never leave my friends..." he murmured with a small smile before he passed out. That was the final straw. Malecasu was reborn once again, only this time, she was in her full demon form. Somehow, my t-shirt and blue jeans were replaced with a pale blue robe that fit like a glove to my new form; it was obviously a favorite of Malecasu's. Seven feet tall, with inch-long claws, silver hair, and an orange fox tail and ears, Malecasu was a fearsome sight to behold. Botan, Yukina, Keiko, and Shizuru were sitting in the audience, and they each gasped upon seeing Malecasu. Botan, however, looked grave. "Oh my..." Her hand went to her mouth. "What, Botan? Is something wrong?" asked Yukina. "Yes, Yukina. I believe that Spirit World has completely misjudged Malecasu. Normally, Rainer demons never exist for very long, destroying everything within their reach in suicidal blasts, so I was intrigued to learn that Malecasu had a human form, and was biding her time with the destruction. The other Rainer demons' short bursts definitely aren't as powerful and destructive as one that has had time to mature and grow stronger. Now I see that I have made a serious error in allowing Malecasu to go on like this, for an explosion of all of her power at this strength could annihilate all of Japan!" "But aren't Rainer demons welcomed in Spirit World?" Yukina questioned. An ironic chuckle escaped Botan's lips. "Yes, they're welcomed in Spirit World, because we're happy that they're dead, and can't cause any more trouble in the human world!" "What?!? What's going on?!" Malecasu said out loud. "I didn't want to show myself just yet!" "Haven't you noticed yet that you appear whenever I'm mad or upset?" I asked her wryly, still speaking aloud, although it was still in Malecasu's voice, so it looked like she was talking to herself. "It's really me who determines when you emerge. Hey, I can have temporary control over your body now! Ha ha!" "Hn," Malecasu sulked, and crossed her arms. Every demon in the stadium was staring at us now. "Hey," Malecasu and I growled to Juri and Koto, and gave them a death glare, "Let's get back to the match." "Oh, yes, of course! Who will be the next two fighters?" A very tall demon wearing bulky samurai armor all over his body was the next to compete. "Team Toguro's fighter will be Bui. From Team Urameshi...?" Juri announced as Bui stepped onto the ring. After a few seconds, Hiei jumped in front of him. Sakura moaned. "All right, people, the second match of the Dark Tournament will now begin! Bui and Hiei, are you ready? Fight!"  
  
Ellen: I was stuck at this part for so long! Only about 5 more pages to go 'till the end!  
  
Fwooshy: Thank goodness.  
  
Ellen: Hey!  
  
Fwooshy: What?!  
  
Cheddar: We have four fanfics now, one in Digimon, one in Pokèmon, and  
one in Yu-Gi-Oh! Please read and review them! 


	12. Our Turn

Ellen: Wow, I'm almost done! I polished off the ending a while ago, so  
all I've got left is to post it all! I guess I'll just finish it off  
now! By the way, what the heck is wrong with the formatting? ARRGH!!  
Anyway, at this point, I'm gonna start another fanfic, "Excerpts from  
Nerua Teraf's Diary". It's set after the Dark Tournament as if the  
things in the endings don't happen.  
  
Fwooshy: Wait, did you say ending"s"?  
  
Ellen: Yep! There are two endings to this fic. I'll say more after  
this chapter.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own YYH. If I did, however, I'd write myself in  
and be a total Kurama fangirl!!  
  
Fwooshy: Oh, brother.  
  
Once again, all we could do was watch. Of course, Hiei beat Bui much faster than Kurama beat Karasu, and Hiei never was very friendly, but still it was agonizing for me to see a friend get hurt, and even more so to hear Sakura's cries of concern. Malecasu, on the other hand, was bored, and that had the potential to be dangerous. Fortunately for the crowd, she wasn't feeling very power-hungry at the moment.  
  
Hiei's victory made the score 1-1. Next it was Kuwabara's turn to fight the elder Toguro brother. This battle was just sad; Toguro knocked Kuwabaka all around the ring and back, inflicting serious injuries as well. Malecasu simply chuckled to herself. As soon as Kuwabara's match was over, Yukina came racing out of the audience to help heal his wounds, but not before bowing hastily in front of me.  
  
'Hahaha! That's right! Bow before the great Rainer Demon!' Malecasu thought to me exultantly, but I would not allow her to say it aloud.  
  
The score of the tournament was 2-1. Yusuke needed to beat the younger Toguro brother to tie it up, or else... well, I didn't care to think about that possibility. Anyway, in the end, Yusuke handed his opponent a sound beating, which led to the tiebreaker – me versus Sakyo. Sakyo looked visibly nervous as he stepped onto the ring. Malecasu grinned and began to crack her knuckles.  
  
It was time.  
  
Well, that ends my self-narration. Now I'm ready to fight, and I can feel Malecasu's lithe muscles tensing in anticipation.  
  
Ellen: Okay, sorry about the short chappie, but if I wrote any more  
the story would lean towards one ending or another. So, if you would  
like to make Nerua a happy Rainer Demon, go to the next chapter, but  
for all you sadists out there who want me dead, well, read the last  
chapter instead. Or read both!  
  
Fwooshy: Why did you even write that last chapter, anyway?  
  
Ellen: Because you kept nagging me!  
  
Fwooshy: ^__^ Oh yeah!! You know how much of a sadist I am!  
  
Cheddar: Would you people please review already? I've only asked you  
about ten times! Please please please please please please please  
please please please please please please please...  
  
Ellen: Oh boy, now you've gotten her started. Please review, people,  
or I think Cheddar's either gonna get dehydrated or suffocate from  
talking so much! 


	13. Happy Ending

Ellen: All right, Thank you for being nice and reading the happy  
ending! I guess it is a bit mushy at the end... And I guess we are a bit  
young... But I really wish it could happen!  
  
Fwooshy: Wow. This is the ending you put so many hours into?  
  
Ellen: Yeah. You wanna make something of it?!  
  
Fwooshy: No, ma'am...  
  
"Let the final battle of the Dark Tournament, Nerua Teraf versus Sakyo, begin!" Everyone in the crowd is especially excited to watch us duke it out. Sakyo seems frozen to where he stands. I look around for inspiration as to which attack to begin the battle with, for I have no idea of the powers at Sakyo's disposal; I mean, I can't sense any spirit energy coming from him, but he could be able to mask it like the Toguros. However, as soon as I take my eye off of my opponent, he apparently gains his nerve, and runs up to me. Malecasu and I are too stunned to dodge as he punches my stomach repeatedly. We, of course, can't feel his punches at all, since, as apparently a normal human, he can't manipulate his spirit energy. Malecasu and I cock an eyebrow, look down slowly at the rapidly tiring Sakyo as one as he looks up at me, and Malecasu decides to begin the fight by swatting him across the arena. He crumples in a heap as soon as he comes to rest on the edge of the battling platform. Sakyo struggles to get up, but Malecasu saves him the trouble with a strong wind blowing under him that brings the unfortunate human over to where we're standing. Rain clouds form at a thought from sudden inspiration. As the rain falls, I keep Sakyo from being wet temporarily with gradually increasing heat, then I stop the heat when it becomes almost unbearable to let the rain cool him off a bit, and suddenly thunder sounds at the same time an enormous lightningbolt zaps my opponent.  
  
No one in the audience is talking as they witness the spectacle. The whole thing only takes about one minute. Juri and Koto are staring open-mouthed, but Juri regains her composure to begin the final countdown.  
  
"1, 2, 3-"  
  
"Don't even bother," Malecasu chuckles. "Have you ever heard of an ordinary human standing up after a lightning strike? HAHAHAHA!!"  
  
"-8, 9, 10!! The winner of the match is Nerua, and the winner of the Dark tournament is Team Urameshi!!" The crowd sets up a huge uproar of boo's, but all are silenced at a look from me. I jump off of the arena to check on Kurama's health to find him conscious, but still lying down.  
  
"Nerua, that was quite a battle. Sakyo never even saw you coming," Kurama comments. I blush. "And Malecasu," he continues, "thank you for helping her. You have my gratitude..." Kurama passes out, and I regain my human form.  
  
'Hm,' Malecasu thinks to me, 'I guess I can consent to your emotions for this boy. You may date him with my blessing.'  
  
'Oh thank you,' I think back, my thoughts dripping with sarcasm. 'I so greatly appreciate the thought, and without it I would have had to live a life without love.'  
  
'Shut it.'  
  
We've done it. We have finally done it. Team Toguro is dead, and we've won the Dark Tournament!  
  
As our team heads home, everyone is talking excitedly, until Yusuke shouts above everybody.  
  
"Hey!! Victory bash at my house tonight, 8:00 sharp!!" Then everybody begins talking about what they can add to the festivities.  
  
"I've got a karaoke machine in my room. We could have a contest," Shizuru suggests to Yusuke serenely.  
  
"Sure, that would be great!" Yusuke nods.  
  
"And I've got a GameCube! We could play Super Smash Brothers Melee!" I add. "I like playing as..."  
  
"Sure, that would be great!" He nods again.  
  
"Yusuke, are you even listening?"  
  
"Sure, that would be great!" He is talking with Keiko and not paying any attention to anyone else.  
  
"Um, excuse me, Yusuke, would you come here for a moment? I must speak with you." Kurama tears Yusuke away from Keiko and leads him from our group, but no one notices, as we are all chatting merrily.  
  
Around 8:05 everyone congregates at Yusuke's front door, and Keiko rings the bell.  
  
"Hey, where's Kurama?" I ask no one in general. "I haven't seen him since this afternoon." I get my answer when the door opens, and the object of my attention stands in the doorframe.  
  
"Hello, everyone. Please, enter." Calm and cool as always, Kurama leads us inside Yusuke's house, where Yusuke is sitting on his couch, watching t.v. When he spies his guests he springs up.  
  
"Hey, guys! Let's get this party started!" he exclaims.  
  
"All right!" All of the guests jump into the air, with one fist raised. Then, everyone starts partying.  
  
"Excuse me, Nerua? Would you come with me?" No one can hear Kurama except for me, as he is practically whispering in my ear.  
  
"Okay, Kurama, but what's the big secret?" I ask quietly as I allow him to lead me into Yusuke's room. Kurama turns on the light, and what befalls my eyes is...  
  
"Roses! Where did you... There must be a thousand!"  
  
"Exactly nine hundred and ninety-nine." Kurama draws his hand out from behind his back, and presents me with one last, single rose, and a small, navy blue case. He opens it, and I see a gold ring, inset with one emerald, one ruby, and one sapphire. "The sapphire is for your eyes, always smiling and comforting to a friend in need. The emerald is for my eyes, which will always gaze at you with the most love and devotion humanly possible. And the ruby is for our hearts, forever intertwined since the instant I first turned my gaze to you." Kurama lowers to one knee. "Nerua Teraf, would you marry me?" Kurama's face shines as he smiles, and for the fist time since I have met him he looks truly happy.  
  
"Oh, Kurama, yes!! Yes, I will marry you!" Kurama gently slips the ring onto my fourth finger, and I begin to sob with happiness, and hug him. He returns the embrace. We stand like this for quite a long time, until, noticing our absence, the rest of the party comes looking for us.  
  
"When did this happen," wonders Sakura, embarrassed because she has interrupted our scene once again.  
  
"Oh, that Kurama," Yusuke chuckles. "He's had this planned for days now."  
  
I can't be happier. Kurama, my husband? It's almost too much to think about. But, there is also the gnawing feeling in my gut of the demon inside of me. I'll deal with her later. Not now. Not now.  
  
Ellen: Sigh... Kurama-kun! I love you so much! I even love roses a lot  
now!  
  
Fwooshy: Sai, Midori, Aya, you'd better keep your mouths shut about  
this! If you flame me...  
  
Ellen: Okay, Fwooshy. It's all right.  
  
Fwooshy: But she called me a roseaholic...  
  
Ellen: I'm sure she didn't mean it. Let's post the rest of my stuff  
now.  
  
Fwooshy: Fine.  
  
Cheddar: Hey Fwooshy, you're actually being decent for once!  
  
Fwooshy: Watch it.  
  
Cheddar: .__.;; Read and review! 


	14. Sad Ending

Ellen: Well, all you sadists, I hope you're happy with this ending. I  
get depressed every time I read it!  
  
Fwooshy: Finally you are humbled!  
  
Ellen: Shut up.  
  
Disclaimer: (I think I forgot last time but it still applies) I don't  
own Yu Yu Hakusho. And it's a good thing too, if it turns out like  
this ending!  
  
"Let the final battle of the Dark Tournament, Nerua Teraf versus Sakyo, begin!" Everyone in the crowd is especially excited to watch us duke it out. Sakyo seems frozen to where he stands. I look around for inspiration as to which attack to begin the battle with, for I have no idea of the powers at Sakyo's disposal; I mean, I can't sense any spirit energy coming from him, but he could be able to mask it like the Toguros. As soon as I take my eye off of my opponent, however, I sense a mass of Spirit energy draining from the crowd into Sakyo.  
  
"Hahaha," Sakyo crows. "Judging by your blank expression, you were previously unaware of my powers, weren't you? I can mask my Spirit energy, and I can also drain the life force of other living beings, especially demons, and steal their special powers. For example..." he points to a demon in the audience, "that unfortunate soul is most adept at controlling water. He can form rain from just the moisture from someone's sweat. That demon over there can manipulate a person's brainwave patterns and control their every action. And now..." Sakyo reaches out his hands to the audience members, and closes his eyes for a moment, and when he opens them, my opponent finishes his sentence. "...so can I." Sakyo mutters a few incoherent syllables, moves his hands around, and suddenly, my head feels like it is splitting open. Malecasu and I try to rush him, but all of a sudden, we freeze in our tracks, and sink to our knees, clutching my head in pain.  
  
'All right,' Malecasu thinks. 'I believe that it's time.'  
  
'Time for what? Malecasu, you can't be thinking of...'  
  
'Yes. It is time that I fulfilled my purpose for being born into this world. That is the only way that we can defeat our opponent.'  
  
'B-b-but... our friends will all be-'  
  
'Saved. You will warn them now. Let me know when you are ready.'  
  
I painfully struggle to my feet, and fight Sakyo's increasing power to reach the edge of the arena where everyone is standing. "Leave. All of you have to get out of here! Malecasu... Malecasu will... do it... her finishing move... Goodbye..." I whisper to the team. They stare at me for a second, then when they realize that I am serious, Yusuke and Kuwabara make a dash for the exits, probably thinking, 'Every man for himself!'; Botan drags Keiko, Shizuru, and Yukina with her. Hiei, knowing that he stands no chance, coolly follows their suit shortly afterwards, but not without a last glance at Malecasu.  
  
'You know, you will survive this,' Malecasu tells me. 'Susanoo may have hated humans, but he was grateful to the ones that bore the Rainer Demons. He let the human host of the Rainer Demon survive as the type of animal that the demon resembled. You will be the only being living within a two- mile radius, however.' It is then that I notice that Kurama, Sakura, and Mitsky had stayed put.  
  
"Guys, what are you doing? You need to leave now! Malecasu and Sakyo are getting impatient, and everything within a two-mile radius of this stadium will be annihilated! You need to tell the others to get as far away from here as possible!" When I see that they aren't moving, I start to get desperate. "I'll be all right! Do I have to teleport you myself?" I would have started to cry long ago, but tears were not something Susanoo needed his Rainer Demons to experience.  
  
Sakura sighs. "Nerua... Malecasu... thank you for everything... Okay. I don't think we have enough time to get away by ourselves, so you'd better do it."  
  
"Wait!" Kurama runs up to the arena, grimacing as he feels Sakyo's power. "Isn't there anything that I can do?"  
  
"No, Kurama. I can't allow myself to let you get hurt. I'll see you later. Look for a fox that seems to know you. That'll be me. ...Goodbye," I say to the three as they disappear.  
  
'All right, Malecasu. Let's get rid of this guy.'  
  
'Finally! I was starting to think that I should have brought a magazine!'  
  
'And Malecasu...'  
  
'Yes?'  
  
'Thank you for everything. I think we make a good team, you and I.'  
  
'Me too.'  
  
We turn our attention back to Sakyo. He actually has a magazine, but he tosses it aside when he sees that we are finally ready to fight.  
  
"It's about time, you two. What's all this about annihilation? And where did your teammates go? Did they desert you?" he asks mockingly. Malecasu chuckles dryly.  
  
"Ha. Sakyo... Do you not recognize what I am?"  
  
Sakyo seems in denial. "No, you couldn't be... they all die at birth... I thought you were just bluffing," he stammers as we loom over him.  
  
"I'll say it one final time: Goodbye." And the world around us is no more.  
  
When I come to my senses again, I stand up, but it isn't quite like I remembered it. For one thing, I am only about a foot off the ground at full height, and for another, I have four legs! I suppose that I am really a fox, but where am I? I look around, and it all seems vaguely familiar to me, but when I gaze upon the four-mile wide crater behind me, I realize that I am still on Hanging-Neck Island. The trees around me rustle, and everyone comes out from where they had been hid- er, bracing themselves. As soon as I spy Kurama, I race over to him and rub against his leg while looking up at him with my crystal blue eyes.  
  
"Nerua?" He stoops down and picks me up while everybody else crowds around. "Oh Nerua..."  
  
Kurama brings me back to our town, and carries me deep into the forest, to the clearing where we had first gotten to know each other. The others had offered to help us, but we just need some time alone. He sets me down on the ground, and sits down himself.  
  
"Nerua? Can you...will you speak to me?" Kurama speaks quietly, almost as if someone might hear him.  
  
Yes, Kurama, but I can only communicate telepathically. You must leave me now, and don't worry about my sake. Go on, live your life without me. A guy can't love a fox. My voice was projected directly into Kurama's mind. (A/N: Where it says "<" should be "". I don't know what's wrong!)  
  
"Don't forget, I'm still a demon too. There must be some way to change this!" Tears well in Kurama's eyes, and stain his shirt dark as they fall. He pounds his fists onto his knees, and gazes at me lovingly, still crying.  
  
No, Kurama. It's my destiny. I walk away, and am about to begin to look for a den, but before I can take three steps into the trees, my side above my right front leg is pierced by a bullet, and I am thrown, about two feet farther away, to the ground.  
  
AAH!!  
  
The two hunters who had fired at me run up to me, and squat down to inspect their prize, not noticing Kurama or my scream.  
  
"Wow. Now that's a pelt!" one of them exclaims.  
  
"Yeah," replied the other, "it's sure to bring a fine price! Imagine, a fox like this just wandering around the forest! Ahahahahaha! Musta' been somebody's pet - huh?" Kurama had come up behind the two, and put his hand on the second hunter's shoulder. The men turn, and stare into the... er, face... of Kurama's death plant.  
  
"That fox wasn't just a pet." Kurama steps away from the two with tears still on his cheeks. His voice trembles. "Now both of you will pay for taking her life!! Go, my Death plant!" It doesn't take long for the death plant to feed once again.  
  
Kurama sprints over to my side, picks me up, and holds me to his chest.  
  
"Nerua!!! No..."  
  
His body heaves with sobs as he cradles the limp form of his love. Suddenly, my body glows, emits a bright light, and grows into my human body, still injured on my right shoulder. I slowly open my eyes, and tears begin to flow down my cheeks, splashing onto Kurama's knees. I am unable to speak above a whisper.  
  
"K-Kurama... you know... I'll... always love you...Unh..." I close my eyes, grimacing with pain as much blood momentarily flows from my wound. My breathing slows, and a wan smile flickers across my lips, before I take my last breath.  
  
Kurama raises his head to the heavens. "NERRRRRRRRRUUUUUUUUUUUUAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa..."  
  
A Rainer demon is slain.  
  
Ellen: *Sigh*... Fwooshy, I hate you.  
  
Fwooshy: ^__^ I know. Heehee! It was pretty sad though.  
  
Ellen: You mean it was good?  
  
Fwooshy: ...Yes... But don't go getting all high and mighty!  
  
Ellen: Fine.  
  
Cheddar: Even though the story is over, we'd still love reviews! 


End file.
